Interview with Olympic champion Katinka Hosszú

At the end of the 200-meter-long medley swimming, Katinka Hosszú was the first one who hit the finish line and the Danube Arena just exploded. During the World Cup in Hungary, she scored four gold and three bronze medals. The fact that she performed so well after the recess of half a year surprised even her. We were talking about the new coach and the work with the Iron Lady.

GLOBS Magazine interview:

GLOBS: First of all, we would like to congratulate to you for the new medals that your collection has been expanded with. We are very proud of you! How do you feel that you have scored your 400th medal in the World Cup series?

Katinka Hosszú: Of course it’s great, who would not like it. However, I do not count my medals myself, I leave this to the press. Nevertheless, when I learned that this will be a special milestone, I wanted this important medal to be a gold one. I did my best!

GLOBS: The crowd was furious, the house was full and there were 5000 fans on the grand-stand. Could the atmosphere have been any better? People usually ask this rhetorical question. At the same time, one must realize that there is a great deal of pressure on you when swimming in front of the Hungarian audience. Do you feel this duality in yourself? Otherwise, are you only motivated by the Hungarian audience?

Katinka:

The Hungarian audience is very special. This was also recognized by foreign swimmers during the last year’s World Cup and now as well.

There is no such cheer and loudness anywhere else in the world! Competing in Hungary is always a big burden, especially to me. Everyone takes it for granted that Katinka always wins. Of course, during previous domestic competitions I have learned that I must only concentrate on swimming and on my own performance. Today, I can ignore the world around me very well. I have to admit that lately I have repeatedly wondered what is the point in what I do. I could spend my time with more meaningful things than watching the line in the pool eight hours a day. However, a competition like this is a serious reason to continue, because I receive a lot of love and feedbacks. Many people have said that I am their idol, that I give them strength and motivation for sport and everyday life. I am happy that I can give something to the people.

GLOBS: With so many gold medals from World Cups, Olympics and European Championships behind you, technically every competition is somewhat “risky”. For instance, you have scored six medals at a particular event. In case you scored only five this time, people would not understand what was happening. How can you handle the expectations of others? Do you compare your results with your best performance?

Katinka: There is no need to deal with the expectations of others. I have to meet my own expectations. I always set goals and work to achieve them. These goals are not realized in medals or scores. The most important thing is that I can always show the best performance. I want to feel that I could not have done any better when I hit the finish line. I want to feel that I did my best on that day. I do not want to compare myself to myself either. Obviously,

I know the quality of work I have done and what can be achieved with that amount of work.

Otherwise, it is clear from the time results achieved during the last World Cup that we are moving to a very good direction.

[button link=”https://dailynewshungary.com/katinka-hosszu-is-the-best-female-swimmer-of-the-year/” newwindow=”yes”] KATINKA HOSSZÚ IS THE BEST FEMALE SWIMMER OF THE YEAR[/button]